Biography
With her captivating good looks and desire to perform from an early age, Tia Carrere's journey to Hollywood was practically a foregone conclusion. Arriving on the mainland while barely out of high school, Carrere quickly began landing jobs as a model and actress, making small guest appearances on several episodic television series. Although initially cast as the ubiquitous "babe" in B-movie fare like 1991's "Harley Davidson and the Marlboro …
Tia Carrere SlideShow
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Career Milestones
| Appeared as a contestant on the syndicated talent show "Star Search" | ||
| Moved to L.A. after high school graduation | ||
| Worked as a model | ||
1985 | Joined the cast of ABC's daytime soap opera "General Hospital" playing the role of Jade Soong Chung | |
1985 | Made TV acting debut in an episode of "Airwolf" (CBS) | |
1987 | Feature acting debut, "Zombie Nightmare" | |
1988 | First significant film role, "Aloha Summer" | |
1989 | Appeared on the short-lived situation comedy, "Living Dolls" (ABC) | |
1990 | First credit as a song performer, "Instant Karma" | |
1991 | Appeared in the action film "Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man" starring Mickey Rourke and Don Johnson | |
1992 | Cast as Cassandra, a rock singer and love interest of Mike Myers' character Wayne, in "Wayne's World" | |
1992 | Signed a recording deal with Warner Bros. | |
1993 | Joined Sean Connery and Wesley Snipes to star in "Rising Sun" | |
1993 | Released first album, Dream | |
1993 | Reprised the role of Cassandra in the sequel to the hugely successful "Wayne's World" | |
1994 | Teamed with Arnold Schwarzenegger for "True Lies" playing smuggler Juno Skinner | |
1995 | Cast as robber Gina Walker in "The Immortals" | |
1996 | Co-starred in the comedy "High School High" | |
1997 | Starred as the evil witch/queen in "Kull the Conqueror" | |
1998 | Was an executive producer (with husband) on "20 Dates" | |
1999 | Starred as archeology professor Sydney Fox in the syndicated series "Relic Hunter" | |
2002 | Appeared nude in Playboy's celebrity photo layout | |
2002 | Voiced older sister Nani Pelekai in the Disney animated film "Lilo & Stitch" | |
2006 | Joined the second season of ABC's Hit Series, "Dancing with the Stars" | |
2007 | Had a recurring role on HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" as Cha Cha, Richard Lewis's girlfriend | |
Awards
1992 | MTV Movie Award for Most Desirable Female in Wayne's World |
1995 | MTV Movie Award for Best Dance Sequence in True Lies |
2008 | Grammy Award for Best Hawaiian Music Album |